<<silently>><<set $distro = 1>><<endsilently>>The easiest way to get your game out there if you have a downloadable file (like a .exe or a .dmg) is <html><a href="http://itch.io/" target="_blank">Itch.io</a></html>. Itch.io is doubly cool too because if you choose to sell your game, you can charge anything you want for it and they take 0% out of it. \n\nIf your game is embeddable in a webpage, that's even easier! People hate downloading things from people they don't already have an interest in, so making an embeddable game makes it that much easier to share and get feedback. If you don't have your own website, you can host things on <html><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/" target="_blank">Dropbox</a></html> and send a link out that way. If you're making a Twine game, there's a <html><a href="http://www.philome.la/" target="_blank">website specifically dedicated to hosting Twine games</a></html>.\n\n[[Take me home!|endingpage]]

<<silently>>\n<<set $tool = 0>>\n<<set $graphics = 0>>\n<<set $audio = 0>>\n<<set $design = 0>>\n<<set $distro = 0>>\n<<endsilently>>\n<html><center><img src="http://sortingh.at/sortinghat.gif"></center></html>\n\nWish you could make games but have no idea how you'd get started? Have you never coded a day in your life and feel overwhelmed trying to teach yourself? Can't draw anything beyond stick figures? Overwhelmed and don't know what questions to even ask? You're in luck!\n\nSortingh.at is a tool that will give you personalized resources to help you get started making your first game, custom tailored to what you're actually making. \n\nThis interactive guide is meant for people with no budget and no experience whatsoever in making games or programming. The guide also works for people who are working alone, though it can easily be used by teams as well. If you're simply looking for a ton of resources and links, consider <html><a href="http://www.pixelprospector.com/game-development/" target="_blank">checking out PixelProspector</a></html>\n\nDon't worry too much about about saving all these links (though they will open in new tabs), SortingH.at will save your choices and give you a personalized link list at the end of it. \n\n[[Let's start with figuring out which tool to start with.|gameTool]]\n\n<html><i><a href="https://twitter.com/TheDanaAddams">Pixelart hat thanks to Dana Addams</a>, <a href="http://www.glorioustrainwrecks.com/node/5163">Twine Stylesheet by Leon Arnott.</a></i></html>

<<silently>><<set $tool = 8>><<endsilently>>It's ok if you're not sure what you want to make yet. If you're not sure but still want to start learning how to make games, I highly suggest downloading one of the tools listed for [[general 2D games|2dgeneral]] and playing around with one of the games the tool comes prepackaged with. \n\nTry changing the art. Change the sound effects. Change the variables so that maybe something that typically does 3 damage does 6 damage. Maybe once you get the hang of the logic, add a new behavior or function from scratch. Play around with it until it becomes unrecognizable. You may get an idea just from that. \n\nFailing that, consider taking a simple game that you like, something along the lines of Pong or Space Invaders in terms of complexity, and try re-making it in one of these tools. It'll help you get familiar with them, and who knows - you might have an idea along the way from that.\n\nRemember, your first game doesn't have to be a big deal. It doesn't even have to be something you show anyone. It's just like starting out drawing or making music - the first things you make are likely going to be terrible and without direction, and that's TOTALLY FINE. It's part of the process. What matters is that you make stuff and see it as part of the learning process.\n \n[[I don't know. Let's just skip to what to do about game assets. (that's devspeak for stuff like graphics and sound)|graphics]] \n[[I want to look at other tools first|gameTool]]

<<silently>><<set $tool = 3>><<endsilently>>\n<html><img src="http://sortingh.at/rpgmakerss.gif"></html>\n\nYour best bet is likely <html><a href="http://www.rpgmakerweb.com/" target="_blank">RPGMaker</a></html>. Sadly though, RPGMaker isn't free software outside of the <html><a href="http://www.rpgmakerweb.com/download/free-programs/rpg-maker-vx-ace-lite" target="_blank">RPGMakerVX Ace Lite</a></html> version, however they do have free trials and if you think it's right for you and have the cash to spare, you can get the <html><a href="http://www.rpgmakerweb.com/products/programs/rpg-maker-xp" target="_blank">RPGMaker XP version for $25 USD.</a></html>\n\nThat is a lot of different versions with a lot of different names, so if you want a comparison of the features that come with each, check out <html><a href="http://www.rpgmakerweb.com/support/information/comparisons" target="_blank">a list of version differences here.</a></html> Sadly, the free version is absent from here for some reason.\n\nRegardless, RPGMaker comes with standard JRPG conventions built into the engine, including inventory systems, level creation tools, dialog engines, and pre-packaged assets. It will only export .exe files, which means Mac and Linux users won't be able to play your game unfortunately.\n\nTo see an example of a game made in RPGMaker, check out <html><a href="http://freebirdgames.com/to_the_moon/" target="_blank">To The Moon</a></html>\n\nTheir website has a handful of tutorials <html><a href="http://www.rpgmakerweb.com/support/products/tutorials" target="_blank">here</a></html>, and an active online forum <html><a href="http://forums.rpgmakerweb.com/" target="_blank">here.</a></html> You can find other tutorials <html><a href="http://rpgmaker.net/tutorials/" target="_blank">here</a></html> and some video tutorials <html><a href="https://www.youtube.com/show/rpgmakervxacetutorials" target="_blank">here.</a></html>\n\nIf you need a tool that allows for different features or lets you export games to different formats, consider [[downloading a generic 2D game tool|2dgeneral]] instead. \n\n[[Onto assets! (that's devspeak for stuff like graphics and sound)|graphics]] \n[[I want to look at other tools first|gameTool]]

<<silently>><<set $tool = 9>><<endsilently>>All of the following will run on Linux without needing to use an emulator.\n\n<html><img src="http://sortingh.at/stencylss.gif" target="_blank"></html>\n<html><a href="http://www.stencyl.com/">Stencyl</a></html> is a tool that will let you make a wide variety of 2D games. Stencyl also uses Flash, and is free to publish to the web. If you want to publish to a desktop application, it's $99 yearly, and if you want to publish to iOS and Android it's an additional $100. Additionally, Stencyl has a built-in asset store that lets you download free game art, sounds, and scripts and put them right in your game.\n\nFor a cool example of a game made in Stencyl, check out <html><a href="http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/582867" target="_blank">Gyossait by Amon26</a></html>.\n\nStencyl, comes with sample games and tutorials to mess around with, and following their <html><a href="http://www.stencyl.com/help/start/" target="_blank">crash course tutorials</a></html> is the best way to get started with making games on the platform. For additional cool interactive tutorials, <html><a href="http://www.stencyl.com/help/viewArticle/102" target="_blank">check this site out</a></html>\n\n<html><img src="http://sortingh.at/twiness.gif"></html>\n<html><a href="http://twinery.org/2/#welcome" target="_blank">Twine 2.0</a></html> will let you make hypertext interactive fiction games right inside your browser without even having to download anything. It's free, will run on just about anything, and is really easy to learn. If you want to do more complex things with it, you can easily insert your own scripts and macros and modify it in any way that you would do with a website, and including images and music is just as simple.\n\nGames made in Twine include <html><a href="http://scoutshonour.com/cowgirl/" target="_blank">Even Cowgirls Bleed by Christine Love</a></html>, <html><a href="http://noncanon.com/HorseMaster.html" target="_blank">Horse Master: The Game Of Horse Mastery by Tom McHenry</a></html>, and <html><a href="http://mkopas.net/files/conversations/conversations.html" target="_blank">Conversations With My Mother by merritt kopas</a></html>\n\nLearn enough to start making games in about half an hour <html><a href="http://www.auntiepixelante.com/twine/" target="_blank">here.</a></html>\nFind some cool code that will help you customize the look and functionality of your game <html><a href="http://twinery.org/wiki/resources" target="_blank">here.</a></html>.\nFind some source code for examples <html><a href="http://twinery.org/wiki/example_files" target="_blank">here.</a></html>\n\nTwine will automatically export to an html file, which you can put on your own hosting or upload for free <html><a href="http://www.philome.la/" target="_blank">here</a></html> if you don't have any, making it super easy to get your game out there.\n\nIf you want to turn your twine html game into an executable program people can download and play offline, check out <html><a href="https://github.com/rogerwang/node-webkit/wiki/Tutorials-on-Node-WebKit" target="_blank">Node-Webkit (requires some coding knowledge).</a></html>\n\n<html><img src="http://sortingh.at/informss.gif"></html>\nIf you want to try your hand at interactive fiction but prefer going the text parsing route (the kind where you type in commands like GO NORTH), you may want to check out <html><a href="http://inform7.com/" target="_blank">Inform</a></html>.\n\nInform is free and is designed specifically to make games like Zork and other text-parsing interactive fiction games. The source code reads quite a lot like english and was designed to be easy to read and write in without knowing any code whatsoever.\n\nIn order to play games generated by Inform, you either need to export it as a web page (an html file) or you need to have an "interpreter" to run the story file through if you want a standalone version. You can find out more about that <html><a href="http://inform7.com/if/interpreters/" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\nTo see a cool example of Inform in action, check out <html><a href="http://iplayif.com/?story=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ifarchive.org%2Fif-archive%2Fgames%2Fcompetition2006%2Fglulx%2Ffloatpoint%2FFloatpoint.zblorb" target="_blank">Floatpoint by Emily Short</a></html>.\n\nYou can find a good tutorial on getting started with Inform <html><a href="http://inform7.com/learn/manuals/" target="_blank">here</a></html>, a library of extensions you can use to expand what the engine can do <html><a href="http://inform7.com/write/extensions/" target="_blank">here</a></html>, and completed projects with available source code that you can play around with <html><a href="http://inform7.com/learn/complete-examples/" target="_blank">here</a></html>. There is also an active forum for Inform <html><a href="http://www.intfiction.org/forum/" target="_blank">here</a></html>, and a decent, simple quickstart guide <html><a href="http://www.brasslantern.org/writers/howto/i7tutorial.html" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\nIf you want to try making a visual novel on Linux, you will likely want to take a look at <html><a href="http://www.renpy.org/" target="_blank">RenPy</a></html>. \n\nRenPy is a cross-platform visual novel engine that runs on Python (hence the "Py"). It comes pre-packaged with a lot of the basic functionality of a standard visual novel - a menu system, dialog engine, and so on and so forth. It's completely free, even to sell and distribute the games you make with it, and you can build games for multiple platforms including mobile ones. It also uses a very simple scripting system that sort of looks like a screenplay, letting non-coders get started building out their games very quickly. You can also insert your own Python-based code to extend the functionality of the engine.\n\nTo see a cool game made with Renpy, check out <html><a href="http://scoutshonour.com/digital/" target="_blank">Digital: A Love Story by Christine Love</a></html>\n\nTo get started, check out their quickstart guide <html><a href="http://www.renpy.org/doc/html/quickstart.html" target="_blank">here.</a></html> You can also find more in-depth tutorials <html><a href="http://renpyhandbook.tumblr.com/code-tutorials\n" target="_blank">here.</a></html>\n\n\n[[Onto assets! (that's devspeak for stuff like graphics and sound)|graphics]] \n[[I want to look at other tools first|gameTool]]

<<silently>><<set $tool = 7>><<endsilently>><html><img src="http://sortingh.at/twiness.gif"></html>\n\nYou likely want to start out with Twine (works for Windows and OSX - sorry linux users). It's free, will run on just about anything, and is really easy to learn. If you want to do more complex things with it, you can easily insert your own scripts and macros and modify it in any way that you would do with a website, and including images and music is just as simple.\n\nGames made in Twine include <html><a href="http://scoutshonour.com/cowgirl/" target="_blank">Even Cowgirls Bleed by Christine Love</a></html>, <html><a href="http://noncanon.com/HorseMaster.html" target="_blank">Horse Master: The Game Of Horse Mastery by Tom McHenry</a></html>, and <html><a href="http://mkopas.net/files/conversations/conversations.html" target="_blank">Conversations With My Mother by merritt kopas</a></html>\n\nDownload it <html><a href="http://twinery.org/" target="_blank">here.</a></html>\nLearn enough to start making games in about half an hour <html><a href="http://www.auntiepixelante.com/twine/" target="_blank">here.</a></html>\nFind some cool code that will help you customize the look and functionality of your game <html><a href="http://twinery.org/wiki/resources" target="_blank">here.</a></html>.\nFind some source code for examples <html><a href="http://twinery.org/wiki/example_files" target="_blank">here.</a></html>\n\nTwine will automatically export to an html file, which you can put on your own hosting or upload for free <html><a href="http://www.philome.la/" target="_blank">here</a></html> if you don't have any, making it super easy to get your game out there.\n\nIf you want to turn your twine html game into an executable program people can download and play offline, check out <html><a href="https://github.com/rogerwang/node-webkit/wiki/Tutorials-on-Node-WebKit" target="_blank">Node-Webkit (requires some coding knowledge).</a></html>\n\nTwine also just released a 2.0 version that works right in your browser without needing to download it. Check it out <html><a href="http://twinery.org/2/#welcome" target="_blank">here.</a></html>\n\n[[Onto assets! (that's devspeak for stuff like graphics and sound)|graphics]]\n[[I want to look at other tools first|gameTool]]\n

<<silently>><<set $tool = 4>><<endsilently>><html><img src="http://sortingh.at/renpyss.gif"></html>\n\nYou will likely want to take a look at <html><a href="http://www.renpy.org/" target="_blank">RenPy</a></html>. \n\nRenPy is a cross-platform visual novel engine that runs on Python (hence the "Py"). It comes pre-packaged with a lot of the basic functionality of a standard visual novel - a menu system, dialog engine, and so on and so forth. It's completely free, even to sell and distribute the games you make with it, and you can build games for multiple platforms including mobile ones. It also uses a very simple scripting system that sort of looks like a screenplay, letting non-coders get started building out their games very quickly. You can also insert your own Python-based code to extend the functionality of the engine.\n\nTo see a cool game made with Renpy, check out <html><a href="http://scoutshonour.com/digital/" target="_blank">Digital: A Love Story by Christine Love</a></html>\n\nTo get started, check out their quickstart guide <html><a href="http://www.renpy.org/doc/html/quickstart.html" target="_blank">here.</a></html> You can also find more in-depth tutorials <html><a href="http://renpyhandbook.tumblr.com/code-tutorials\n" target="_blank">here.</a></html>\n\nIf you need a tool that allows for different features or lets you export games to the web instead of as standalone executable files, consider [[downloading a generic 2D game tool|2dgeneral]] instead. \n\n[[Onto assets! (that's devspeak for stuff like graphics and sound)|graphics]] \n[[I want to look at other tools first|gameTool]]\n

<<silently>><<set $graphics = 3>><<endsilently>><html><a href="http://www.blender.org/" target="_blank">Blender</a></html> is a great free tool for making 3D graphics that you can use in your games. To get started with Blender, check out some tutorials <html><a href="http://www.blender.org/support/tutorials/" target="_blank">here</a></html>, <html><a href="http://cgcookie.com/blender/cgc-courses/blender-basics-introduction-for-beginners/" target="_blank">here</a></html>, and <html><a href="http://www.creativebloq.com/3d-tips/blender-tutorials-1232739" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\nFor a more general overview on how to make 3D art for games, check out <html><a href="http://gamedevelopment.tutsplus.com/articles/3d-primer-for-game-developers-an-overview-of-3d-modeling-in-games--gamedev-5704" target="_blank">this guide</a></html>. If you need general help with drawing and animation for games, check out the list of resources <html><a href="hhttp://www.pixelprospector.com/the-big-list-of-drawing-and--animation/" target="_blank">here.</a></html>\n\n[[Awesome, let's move onto sound.|sound]]\n[[I think I'd like to look at my other options|graphics]]

<<silently>><<set $tool = 2>><<endsilently>><html><img src="http://sortingh.at/unityss.gif"></html>\n\nI suggest <html><a href="http://unity3d.com/" target="_blank">Unity 3D</a></html> for getting your feet wet with 3D game development, but with a minor disclaimer.\n\nUpfront, I am gonna say that I don't *100%* suggest first time game developers with no prior experience in coding dive headfirst into 3D game development, but it's really more of an "I'd be cautious" thing more than an outright "do not do this". I know this may be a controversial statement, but hear me out.\n\nSo here's the thing about Unity.\n\nIt's easily one of the most powerful tools out there for making games right now. It's even being used by big, non-indie developers to make games like Assassin's Creed Identity. It outputs to just about anything, works on PC and Mac, it can be used to make 2D games, it's ridiculously powerful, and it has honestly revolutionized indie game development.\n\nHowever, a lot of people have found it daunting to use as a starting point. You do need to know some level of programming. Not a ton, but knowing some basics will help you tremendously (if you're not sure how "if/then"s work, then maybe this applies to you). The interface has adobe syndrome as well - it can do damn near anything, but the learning curve can be a little steep for some people. Not only that, but working in a 3rd dimension instead of making a simpler 2D game means that there's more that you need to worry about, there's more that can go wrong, and the other tools in this guide will *likely* have you up and running a bit faster.\n\nThis can quite easily discourage a first timer, or someone who already thinks they can't make games. Remember - this is your first game. It is not going to be Call of Duty, and that's more than ok. What matters is getting started, being able to finish things, and learning from all of your experiences firsthand - not making your perfect first game in one go. \n\n[[You can always make a simple game in a simpler tool and come back to Unity and 3D games later.|2dgeneral]]\n\nThat said, if you're determined to push past the learning curve, are ok with maybe trying something else if Unity is too much at first, want to learn a bit of coding, and are making the very valid choice of starting with Unity because that's the tool you're planning on sticking with in the long term, let's party.\n\nIf you want to go 3D, there's no better tool to start with in my opinion, and in general Unity is fantastic.\n\nThe free version has just about everything you need (for a full comparison click <html><a href="http://unity3d.com/unity/licenses" target="_blank">here</a></html>), and more than enough to get you started. \n\nOne of the best things about Unity is the community surrounding it. Unity themselves have put together a bunch of different learning modules on <html><a href="http://unity3d.com/learn/tutorials/modules" target="_blank">their site</a></html>, but the community itself has created a ton of tutorials for beginners. You can find some <html><a href="http://www.unity3dstudent.com/category/modules/beginner/" target="_blank">here</a></html>, <html><a href="http://catlikecoding.com/unity/tutorials/" target="_blank">here</a></html>, and <html><a href="http://workshops.ko-opmode.com/" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\nThe <html><a href="https://www.assetstore.unity3d.com/en/" target="_blank">Asset Store</a></html> attached to Unity lets you find all sorts of components made by the community for use in Unity, from art and music down to specific scripts and add-ons. They also have a decent community hub <html><a href="http://unity3d.com/community/" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\nIf you do start messing around in Unity, and are finding it hard to finish something small, don't despair. It's totally ok to mess around with one of the other tools and come back to it later. It's a lot to take in all at once if this is your first brush with game development, and nobody understands everything instantly. What's important is that you keep making stuff!\n\n[[Onto assets! (that's devspeak for stuff like graphics and sound)|graphics]] \n[[I want to look at other tools first|gameTool]]

I hope this guide helped! \n\n!!For a compiled list of personally tailored resources based on your answers, [[click here|personalguide]]. \n\nFor a huge and comprehensive list of resources, check out <html><a href="http://www.pixelprospector.com/indie-resources/" target="_blank">Pixel Prospector</a></html>. Don't be afraid to reach out to the indie community either! A lot of us are on Twitter and happy to help. There's also a ton of local <html><a href="http://www.igda.org/?page=chapters" target="_blank">International Game Developers Association</a></html> chapters if you want to find people near you!\n\nBest of luck. Don't be afraid to fail. Don't make your game too big - try and start with one small idea and just try and get that up and running. If you get stuck, look for a tutorial and follow it carefully. When you're done, if you liked making it, make more! Share with other people and get advice on what you did right and wrong and carry that forward. Never stop experimenting. \n\nShred up to a hoop on a surfboard made of Hell Yes and slam dunk all over your self doubt.\n\n- Zoe Quinn\n\n<html><i>If the real reason you're here is to get sorted into a Harry Potter house, <a href="http://www.thealmightyguru.com/Reviews/HarryPotter/Docs/Quiz-House.html" target="_blank">click here you nerd</a></i></html>.

Sortingh.at

<<silently>><<set $design = 1>><<endsilently>>Pixel Prospector, as usual, has a massive list of design resources <html><a href="http://www.pixelprospector.com/the-big-list-of-game-design/" target="_blank">here</a></html>, but some of my favorites are <html><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fy0aCDmgnxg" target="_blank">this talk on making "juicy" games</a></html>, these <html><a href="http://asherv.com/threes/threemails/#monster" target="_blank">emails between the creators of Threes during the creation of the game</a></html>, and all of these <html><a href="http://www.gdcvault.com/free" target="_blank">free GDC talks available to stream online</a></html>.\n\nAdditionally, please check out <html><a href="http://gameaccessibilityguidelines.com/basic" target="_blank">this guide</a></html> on how to make your games more accessible to people living with disability. When making games, it's important and helpful to keep in mind that your players may be coming from completely different walks of life and making the game more accessible to everyone can only be a good thing as a result.\n\n[[Move onto distribution!|distribution]]\n

<<silently>><<set $tool = 5>><<endsilently>><html><img src="http://sortingh.at/agsss.gif"></html>\n\nIf you're a Windows user, you're in luck! There is a specific tool called <html><a href="http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/" target="_blank">Adventure Game Studio</a></html> that has already taken care of a lot of the programming for you - all you have to do is download it and start making stuff! AGS has a ton of built in features that start you off with a lot of the functionality of games like Sierra's online adventure games for you (like menus, the ability to use items on other things and so on and so forth). It's completely free, and outputs .exe files (though if you check their downloads page there are ports for running the games you make on other operating systems - sadly there doesn't seem to be a port for the AGS program itself though). \n\nTo check out a game made in AGS, try <html><a href="http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/site/games/game/1172/" target="_blank">Time Gentlemen, Please!</a></html>\n\nAGS has a robust wiki with tutorials for all experience levels <html><a href="http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/wiki/Main_Page" target="_blank">here</a></html>, as well as additional tutorials <html><a href="http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/site/ags/tutorial/ags/" target="_blank">on their main site.</a></html> If you need additional resources, they have an active forum <html><a href="http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/forums/" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\nIf you need a game engine that exports to a different format, like something you can embed in a webpage, or if you are on Mac/Linux, consider trying to start with a general [[2D gamemaking tool instead.|2dgeneral]]\n\n[[Onto assets! (that's devspeak for stuff like graphics and sound)|graphics]] \n[[I want to look at other tools first|gameTool]]

<<silently>><<set $audio = 2>><<endsilently>>One of the best tools for editing any kind of audio is <html><a href="http://audacity.sourceforge.net/" target="_blank">Audacity</a></html>. If you need some tutorials for using it, check <html><a href="http://audacity.sourceforge.net/manual-1.2/tutorials.html" target="_blank">here</a></html>.<html><a href="http://www.fmod.org/download/" target="_blank">Fmod</a></html> is an amazing piece of software specifically geared to creating audio for games, even integrating with some game creation engines like Unity. Check out some tutorials <html><a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/FMODTV" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\nTools aside, you should know about audio in games, is that it's largely split up into sound design, music, and voice acting. Let's break this down by section\n\n<html><h2>Sound Design</h2></html>\n\nSound Design encompasses the audio in your game that accompanies things like animations, menu navigations, environmental atmosphere, and things of that nature. It's a whole other sphere of work aside from music, and one of the most underappreciated ones at that. If a sound is good in a game, you likely don't notice it because you're engrossed in what's going on. If it's bad, it's painfully obvious and can ruin a game.\n\nFor some cool resources on designing good sound for games <html><a href="http://www.soundingames.com/index.php?title=Main_Page" target="_blank">here</a></html> and <html><a href="http://designingsound.org/tag/game-audio/" target="_blank">here</a></html>. For an awesome web-based application for making your own sound effects, go <html><a href="http://www.bfxr.net/" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\n<html><h2>Music</h2></html>\n\nMusic is pretty self-explainatory. Try to choose something for your game that "fits" - either with the action, the mood, or ideally every other element of the game. For some thoughts on how to specifically compose for games, check out this guide <html><a href="http://www.shockwave-sound.com/Articles/B07_Things_to_consider_when_scoring_for_games_part_1.html" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\n<html><h2>Voice Acting</h2></html>\n\nVoice acting is likely out of the scope of your first game (and likely should be unless you're trying to do something super small in scope), but if you need a guide on how to find voice actors, check <html><a href="http://mikebithell.tumblr.com/post/104997317017/voice-actor-hiring-cheat-sheet" target="_blank">this out</a></html>. \n\nFor more assorted resources and guides on game audio go <html><a href="http://www.pixelprospector.com/sound-music-creation-software/" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\n[[Cool, let's move onto design advice!|design]]\n[[I'd like to learn about open source audio instead.|openaudio]]

<<silently>><<set $graphics = 0>><<endsilently>>\nDo you need graphics? \n\n[[Yes, but I'm not an artist.|openart]]\n[[Yes, I'd like to learn how to make my own 2D graphics.|2dtuts]]\n[[Yes, I'd like to learn how to make my own 3D graphics.|3dtuts]]\n\n[[No, I have art covered or my game doesn't need graphics|sound]]\n

<<set $tool = 0>>What kind of game do you want to make?\n\n<html><img src="http://sortingh.at/2d.gif"></html>\n[[Something 2D like Zelda, Mario, Bejeweled, or any other 2D game not listed below|2dgeneral]]\n\n<html><img src="http://sortingh.at/3d.gif"></html>\n[[Something 3D like Skyrim, Forza, or Mass Effect|3dgeneral]]\n\n<html><img src="http://sortingh.at/rpg.gif"></html>\n[[An RPG like Final Fantasy 6|rpg]]\n\n<html><img src="http://sortingh.at/vs.gif"></html>\n[[A visual novel like Phoenix Wright.|visNov]]\n\n<html><img src="http://sortingh.at/ags.gif"></html>\n[[An adventure game like Monkey Island.|adVent]]\n\n<html><img src="http://sortingh.at/if.gif"></html>\n[[A text-parsing interactive fiction game like Zork|IF]]\n\n<html><img src="http://sortingh.at/twine.gif"></html>\n[[Interactive fiction with hyperlinks like this application|twine]]\n<html><a href="http://yourgameideaistoobig.com/" target="_blank">I want to make an MMO.</a></html>\n\n[[I have no idea.|noIdea]]\n[[I only use Linux, can you save me some clicking and give me a list of what will work?|linux]]\n\n[[I already know what tool I am going to use and want to skip this part.|graphics]]\n

<<silently>><<set $tool = 6>><<endsilently>><html><img src="http://sortingh.at/informss.gif"></html>\nYou may want to check out <html><a href="http://inform7.com/" target="_blank">Inform</a></html>.\n\nInform is free and works on Windows, Mac, and Linux and is designed specifically to make games like Zork and other text-parsing interactive fiction games (the kind you'd type "Go North" into). The source code reads quite a lot like english and was designed to be easy to read and write in without knowing any code whatsoever.\n\nIn order to play games generated by Inform, you either need to export it as a web page (an html file) or you need to have an "interpreter" to run the story file through if you want a standalone version. You can find out more about that <html><a href="http://inform7.com/if/interpreters/" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\nTo see a cool example of Inform in action, check out <html><a href="http://iplayif.com/?story=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ifarchive.org%2Fif-archive%2Fgames%2Fcompetition2006%2Fglulx%2Ffloatpoint%2FFloatpoint.zblorb" target="_blank">Floatpoint by Emily Short</a></html>.\n\nYou can find a good tutorial on getting started with Inform <html><a href="http://inform7.com/learn/manuals/" target="_blank">here</a></html>, a library of extensions you can use to expand what the engine can do <html><a href="http://inform7.com/write/extensions/" target="_blank">here</a></html>, and completed projects with available source code that you can play around with <html><a href="http://inform7.com/learn/complete-examples/" target="_blank">here</a></html>. There is also an active forum for Inform <html><a href="http://www.intfiction.org/forum/" target="_blank">here</a></html>, and a decent, simple quickstart guide <html><a href="http://www.brasslantern.org/writers/howto/i7tutorial.html" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\nIf you need a tool that allows for different features or lets you export games to the web instead of as standalone executable files, consider [[downloading a generic 2D game tool|2dgeneral]] instead, or if you're ok with forsaking the text parser for html hyperlinks, check out [[Twine|twine]]. \n\n[[Onto assets! (that's devspeak for stuff like graphics and sound)|graphics]] \n[[I want to look at other tools first|gameTool]]

<<silently>><<set $audio = 0>><<endsilently>>Do you need audio?\n\n[[Yes, and I can't make my own|openaudio]]\n[[Yes, but I want to learn to make my own|makenoise]]\n\n[[No, my game doesn't need audio or I can make my own.|design]]\n

<<silently>><<set $graphics = 1>><<endsilently>>You definitely want to check out <html><a href="http://opengameart.org/" target="_blank">OpenGameArt</a></html> and <html><a href="http://freegamearts.tuxfamily.org/" target="_blank">FreeGameArts</a></html>. These sites contain mountains of 2D and 3D open source game art, though if you use anything make sure you check the license it's under. Some stuff requires credit (usually a link to the creator), some doesn't, some is ok for commercial use, some of it is only ok for free games. \n\nFor some more assorted 2D assets check <html><a href="http://www.lostgarden.com/search/label/free%20game%20graphics" target="_blank">here</a></html>, <html><a href="http://open.commonly.cc/" target="_blank">here</a></html>, and <html><a href="http://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=8970.0" target="_blank">here</a></html>. Finding open source 3D art is a bit trickier.\n\nYou can also find some assorted assets <html><a href="https://www.makeschool.com/gamernews/277/20-best-free-art-resources-for-game-developers?source=mgwu" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\nAdditionally, some game engines like Unity and Stencyl have "Asset Stores" that have free or commercial art assets that you can use and import directly into your game. Check your engine's manual to see if that's the case.\n\n[[Awesome, let's move onto sound.|sound]]\n[[I think I'd like to look at my other options|graphics]]\n

<<silently>><<set $graphics = 2>><<endsilently>>The first question you want to ask yourself is what kind of art you'd like to put in your game. Personally, I suggest that every bit of the game from mechanics to art should try and reinforce whatever the point of the game is, if that helps.\n\nIf you're looking to do pixel art, <html><a href="http://makegames.tumblr.com/post/42648699708/pixel-art-tutorial" target="_blank">this tutorial by Derek Yu is a fantastic place to start.</a></html> PixelProspector also has a fantastic list of <html><a href="http://www.pixelprospector.com/the-big-list-of-pixel-art-tutorials/" target="_blank">additional pixel art tutorials and resources here.</a></html>\n\nIf you need general help with drawing and animation for games, check out the list of resources <html><a href="hhttp://www.pixelprospector.com/the-big-list-of-drawing-and--animation/" target="_blank">here.</a></html>\n\n[[Awesome, let's move onto sound.|sound]]\n[[I think I'd like to look at my other options|graphics]]

<<silently>><<set $audio = 1>><<endsilently>>For some open source sounds, check <html><a href="http://www.freesound.org/" target="_blank">FreeSound</a></html>, <html><a href="http://www.pdsounds.org/" target="_blank">pdsounds</a></html>, <html><a href="http://www.flashkit.com/soundfx/" target="_blank">and Flashkit</a></html>. For an awesome web-based soundboard that will let you export stuff to WAV files, go <html><a href="http://www.bfxr.net/" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\nFor some open source music, check <html><a href="http://freemusicarchive.org/" target="_blank">Free Music Archive</a></html>, <html><a href="http://www.openmusicarchive.org/" target="_blank">Open Music Archive</a></html>, <html><a href="http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/" target="_blank">and Incompetech</a></html>. For chiptune music, check out the archive of sadly now debunked 8-Bit Collective <html><a href="https://archive.org/details/Best_of_8_Bit_Collective-2006-2011" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\nOne of the best tools for editing any kind of audio is <html><a href="http://audacity.sourceforge.net/" target="_blank">Audacity</a></html>. If you need some tutorials for using it, check <html><a href="http://audacity.sourceforge.net/manual-1.2/tutorials.html" target="_blank">here</a></html>.<html><a href="http://www.fmod.org/download/" target="_blank">Fmod</a></html> is an amazing piece of software specifically geared to creating audio for games, even integrating with some game creation engines like Unity. Check out some tutorials <html><a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/FMODTV" target="_blank">here</a></html>.\n\n[[Cool, let's move onto design advice!|design]]\n[[I'd like to learn about making my own sound instead|makenoise]]\n

<<silently>><<set $tool = 1>><<endsilently>>You're in luck - there are a ton of different frameworks that will cater to you (unless you're a linux user, but if you are, I am sure you're used to that by now).\n\nThe ones that I PERSONALLY suggest for total beginners are <html><a href="https://www.scirra.com/construct2" target="_blank">Construct 2 (windows only)</a></html>, <html><a href="https://www.yoyogames.com/studio" target="_blank">GameMaker (windows only)</a></html>, and <html><a href="http://www.stencyl.com/" target="_blank">Stencyl (windows, mac, and linux)</a></html>.\n\nLet's break this down by-tool.\n\n<html><img src="http://sortingh.at/constructss.gif"></html>\n<html><a href="https://www.scirra.com/construct2" target="_blank">Construct 2</a></html> is my personal favorite. It allows you to easily make games that can export to html sites, standalone programs, and all kinds of things. It uses html5 and javascript and allows you to input your own scripts (or scripts developed by the community) if it's not doing something you need it to.\n\nThe free version does have some limitations (you can see a full comparison of free vs paid versions <html><a href="https://www.scirra.com/store/construct-2" target="_blank">here</a></html>) but for your first game you tend to be unlikely to hit them. \n\nFor a cool example of a game made in Construct 2, check out <html><a href="http://www.konjak.org/index.php?folder=4&file=30" target="_blank">The Iconoclasts by Konjak</a></html>.\n\nConstruct 2 comes pre-packaged with an incredibly useful tutorial that I highly suggest following, as well as a few example games that you can tweak and mess around with to get the feel of it. They also have additional tutorials <html><a href="https://www.scirra.com/tutorials/top/page-1" target="_blank">on their website</a></html> that are incredibly helpful, and if you need help on a specific niche issue, the <html><a href="https://www.scirra.com/forum/" target="_blank">Scirra Forums</a></html> have a lot of assistance, guides, and plugins.\n\n<html><img src="http://sortingh.at/gamemakerss.gif"></html>\n<html><a href="https://www.yoyogames.com/studio" target="_blank">GameMaker</a></html> is a well-documented tool that has been a staple in the indie games community for years. It uses it's own language (GML), and the free version has some more significant drawbacks to it than Construct 2 does - you can only export executable files (meaning your players have to download, and no support for mac or linux), and even if you do buy a personal-use license you have to pay extra to export to a variety of formats.\n\nThat said, the engine is robust and a lot of well-known indie games have been made in it, including <html><a href="http://www.spelunkyworld.com/" target="_blank">Spelunky by Mossmouth</a></html>.\n\nGameMaker also comes pre-packaged with useful tutorials that you should follow as a starting point to becoming aquainted with the tool. Since GameMaker has been around for a long time and amassed a large amount of tutorial sites like <html><a href="http://gamemakertutorials.com/?page_id=2" target="_blank">Gamemakertutorials.com</a></html>, as well as resources like the incredibly useful <html><a href="http://www.gmtoolbox.com/" target="_blank">gmtoolbox</a></html> which has all manner of extensions and examples to expand and customize what the tool can do. \n\n<html><img src="http://sortingh.at/stencylss.gif"></html>\n<html><a href="http://www.stencyl.com/" target="_blank">Stencyl</a></html> is a relative newcomer compared to the two listed above, and as such is less supported and a bit buggier, but it comes with the advantage of being cross-platform and the only option for Mac and Linux users in this list. Stencyl also uses Flash, and is free to publish to the web. If you want to publish to a desktop application, it's $99 yearly, and if you want to publish to iOS and Android it's an additional $100. Additionally, Stencyl has a built-in asset store that lets you download free game art, sounds, and scripts and put them right in your game.\n\nFor a cool example of a game made in Stencyl, check out <html><a href="http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/582867" target="_blank">Gyossait by Amon26</a></html>.\n\nStencyl, like the previous two, comes with sample games and tutorials to mess around with, and following their <html><a href="http://www.stencyl.com/help/start/" target="_blank">crash course tutorials</a></html> is the best way to get started with making games on the platform. For additional cool interactive tutorials, <html><a href="http://www.stencyl.com/help/viewArticle/102" target="_blank">check this site out</a></html>\n\n[[Onto assets! (that's devspeak for stuff like graphics and sound)|graphics]] \n[[I want to look at other tools first|gameTool]]

A Tool by Zoe Quinn/Unburnt Witch

<<silently>><<set $distro = 0>><<endsilently>>Do you need help on distribution (getting your game out there)?\n\n[[Yup!|share]]\n[[Nope - take me to the ending!|endingpage]]\n\n

you found it. this was the corruption in games journalism. good job nancy drew. that was totally worth 4 months of terrorizing people.\n\n